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I think there should be a
twelve-step program for people like me. “Hello, my name is Daryl and I
collect grooming tools!” I won’t even tell you how many pair of shears I
own. And blades? I am still hanging on to some that I bought when I first
started grooming in the 1980’s. Just how many #10 blades can a
single person USE, anyway? I am also loath to admit the number of strange
tools I have stashed away that I never lay hands on. All manner of magical
“rakes” and “dematters” and other various and sundry widgets that I plunked
my cold, hard cash down for then swiftly realized they were useless, or
worse, downright dangerous. But do I get rid of them? NO! After all, I
might NEED them one day.
I am willing to bet
there are others who have this “addiction,” out there. You know, you see
some great new “toy” in a catalog and add it to your order when you buy
shampoo. Or worse, you go to a trade show and actually get to HOLD the
latest gadgets. Once I hold it, feel it, smell it~ I’m sunk! Of course,
not every thing I purchase is useless. My latest splurge on a variety of
Coat Kings was a huge success, but by and large, a lot of the junk I buy is
just that, JUNK.
I am trying to lighten
up. It makes me nuts when I can’t find my Liz Paul poodle comb because it
is under a mound of widgets that I DON’T use. So I have a new mission…
decluttering my grooming area. I’ve only just begun, but already it is
easier to organize my tools and find them when I need them. I’ve developed
a method that is working for me. Maybe it will work for you, too. I got a
sturdy cardboard box and set it within arms reach of my work station. When
I come across a blade that no longer cuts and is not worth sending off to
the sharpener, it goes in the box. Before I would have growled in
frustration and put it back in my blade caddy. I bet I’ve tried that same
tired blade 100 times! Out it goes. When I come across some tool I don’t
use, I don’t store it away, it goes in the box. That Universal slicker with
the bent teeth that looks exactly like the new slicker but scratches me or
the dog I am working on every time? In the box! At the end of each day I
am able to look in the box and see my progress. Then I bag the contents of
that box up and throw it all away. It will take me some time to weed
through the bad and keep the good, but by working slowly and steadily away
at the clutter in my work area, I can see progress and it feels GOOD.
Meanwhile, when I come
across perfectly good scissors that need a nice visit with my “blade guy,” I
put them in a separate box. And that #4 blade that is making altogether too
much noise goes with it.
I really love the feeling
of being organized and in control of my work environment. When I collect
too much “stuff” it insidiously affects my work, slows me down, and makes
everything look messy. Care to join me in lightening up? Its kind of fun
once you get the hang of it. Besides, there are trade shows coming up and I
need room to put the latest and greatest tools I’ll find there!
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